Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Given "Strong-Buy" Rating at Raymond James Financial

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial has reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating for Mercury General (NYSE: MCY) with a new price target of $90.00, indicating a potential upside of 28.35% from the current stock price.
• Mercury General recently reported quarterly earnings of $2.67 EPS, significantly exceeding analysts' expectations, along with a revenue of $1.48 billion.
• Several hedge funds have increased their stakes in Mercury General, with 42.39% of the stock currently owned by institutional investors.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "strong-buy" rating reaffirmed by analysts at Raymond James Financial in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $90.00 price objective on the insurance provider's stock, up from their previous price objective of $80.00. Raymond James Financial's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 28.35% from the stock's current price.

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised Mercury General from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday.

Mercury General Stock Performance

MCY stock traded up $2.08 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $70.12. The company had a trading volume of 42,201 shares, compared to its average volume of 534,547. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market cap of $3.88 billion, a PE ratio of 9.96 and a beta of 0.96. Mercury General has a 12 month low of $44.19 and a 12 month high of $80.72. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $66.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.49.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.10) by $2.77. Mercury General had a net margin of 6.76% and a return on equity of 16.61%. The company had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.45 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Mercury General will post -0.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Mercury General by 2.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,105,976 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $117,723,000 after acquiring an additional 49,155 shares in the last quarter. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Mercury General during the 4th quarter worth about $113,252,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in Mercury General in the 1st quarter worth about $53,535,000. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. purchased a new position in Mercury General during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,485,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Mercury General by 32.9% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 405,464 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $22,665,000 after buying an additional 100,472 shares during the period. 42.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Mercury General

Mercury General Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in writing personal automobile insurance in the United States. The company also writes homeowners, commercial automobile, commercial property, mechanical protection, and umbrella insurance products. Its automobile insurance products include collision, property damage, bodily injury, comprehensive, personal injury protection, underinsured and uninsured motorist, and other hazards; and homeowners insurance products comprise dwelling, liability, personal property, and other coverages.

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